Southern Illinois forward Dantiel Daniels will transfer to Colorado State

Jun. 8, 2013

Southern Illinois Salukis forward Dantiel Daniels (15) plays in a game against Creighton in February. After his recent visit to Fort Collins, Daniels said he plans to transfer to Colorado State University. / Dave Weaver/USA TODAY Sports

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Dantiel Daniels didn’t have to finish his official visit to CSU in order to commit. He knew he was going to be a Ram.

The former Southern Illinois forward texted The Coloradoan halfway through his visit Saturday afternoon to say, “It’s official I’m a Ram now!”

Daniels couldn’t wait to share the news.

“I really liked the community, and the town of Fort Collins is really nice. We went down to the strip (Old Town), and I was comfortable. I got a really good vibe from the coaches, too,” Daniels said in a phone interview. “But I was sold on the town. It was crazy, because Friday, I hadn’t even seen the basketball part of it — just the town. I knew then and there, that this is a place I feel really comfortable with.

“I got to talking with coach (Larry) Eustachy and all the coaches and decided this was the best situation for me to be in.”

Daniels, 6-foot-5, 230 pounds, averaged 7.7 points and 3.2 rebounds for the Salukis last season as a sophomore, while being sidelined off and on throughout the year with ankle and groin injuries.

In 2011-12, he led the Missouri Valley Conference in blocked shots at 1.6 per game, and averaged 8.3 points and 4.9 rebounds — enough to put him on the league’s all-freshman team.

He hasn’t signed a national letter of intent yet, but he hopes to do so as soon as possible, calling himself a man of his word to ensure his verbal commitment to Colorado State University and assistant Ross Hodge will stand. He will not visit any other schools.

Ball State and SIU-Edwardsville were Daniels’ other finalists.

The only players Daniels met on his visit were guards Jordan Mason and Daniel Bejarano. He planned to have dinner with both of them Saturday night and hopes Bejarano — who transferred to CSU from Arizona — can shed some light on what the process of switching schools is like.

Daniels will have to sit out the 2013-14 season due to NCAA transfer regulations.

“The year I have to sit out will do wonders for me. I can perfect my craft and work on the things I need to. Free throws are the biggest hole in my game. Also ball-handling and getting a stronger right hand — I’m a lefty. I’ll be able to go up in the gym and get a lot of shots up while the team is out traveling,” Daniels said. “This is the perfect place for me.”

With Daniels’ commitment, CSU has one open men’s basketball scholarship remaining.